The Salderine Empire

The Hinterlands

Overview

The Hinterlands are a wild frontier; to call the Hinterlands a province is to be very generous. Sparsely populated, only three towns of can be found there: Meadhollow, Crumwedee, and Bulver’s Bastion. However, the road to the Dwarven realm of Karzar Dun passes through the Hinterlands, so the Empire maintains a military presence there, centered around Bulver’s Bastion. All manner of dangerous animals and creatures prowl the forests, plains, and hills of the Hinterlands, as do bandits and the Skevmeni tribe of human barbarians. Kobolds are particularly plentiful; an advanced tribe calling themselves the Smoothscales have build a primitive city to the west of Meadhollow. While some maps may show a delineated border between the Hinterlands and the lands beyond, in actuality there is no such thing; the Hinterlands simply give way to the World’s Fang Mountains and the Tides of Grass beyond them. The one exception to this is the Empire’s border with Kazar Dun. Most of the inhabitants of the Hinterlands worship a small collection of deitys: Uthgar, Malar, Mielikki, and Gwaeron Windstrom are all venerated by the local populace. In Meadhollow, the worship of Chauntea has been growing rapidly thanks to the efforts of Cedrine Ulmak.

Notable Physical Features

The Great Hinterland’s Lake lies at the northern end of the populated portion of the Hinterlands. North of the lake the land quickly become windswept and barren before drooping off into ocean. Bulver’s Bastion lies on its shores, and it is belived to be populated by freshwater merfolk.

The Ogre Run is the largest river in the Hinterlands. It flows west out of the Erinewilds, through Meadhollow, and then turns north where it finally meets the Great Hinterland’s Lake. The Ogre Run is unnavigable and prone to flooding.

The World’s Fangs Mountains are a range of tall and geologically young mountains that form the western edge of the Hinterlands. Kazar Dun is the northernmost peak- beyond that the mountains peter down into foothills. Oogalore is said to rest somewhere in the World’s Fangs.

The Dead Lands of Somaraw is a blasted wasteland in the central Hinterlands. Over two-thousand years ago, the armies of the Great and Bountiful Dwarven Empire and the Elven Kingdoms of the Erinewilds clashed here. Each army was over five hundred thousand strong and both were wiped out to the last. The battle ruined both realms, causing the Dwarves to go into nearly two millenia of isolation and the Elves to form an alliance with the human Kingdom of Salder, forming the Empire.

Notable Landmarks

Dwarven ruins from the Great and Bountiful Dwarven Empire dot the Hinterlands.